The Road Less Traveled…
…and that was the problem. Not maintained, rutted, overgrown on either side, the mile long drive is the only way by vehicle in and out of this abandoned homestead we now spend half the year on….
Enraptured Piglet
On the day of the predicted rapture, I was too busy to follow the news of its not happening — busy taking care of all that was actually happening….
Urban Homesteading in Portland and Beyond
Urban homesteading is not usually the term I use to refer to what I’ve been doing for the best twelve years or so. I tend towards kitchen gardening or urban farming. And these days, I’m transitioning towards rural food production at Amaranta Farm. But I see those who do call themselves urban homesteaders as allies in the same movement, and I’d like to see that movement grow….
Where I Write…
More like, “Where I Try to Write.”
I’m about to head back to the city for the winter. As much as I’m looking forward to an indoor toilet and indoor shower, I’m also longing for a private writing space (…)
Race for the Pears
It’s that time of year again, when my taste buds give up on peaches and berries and begin longing for crunchy pears and apples (…)
Shower Under the Apple Tree
People often ask me what it’s like to live in a yurt. As I wrote in an essay published in The Smoking Poet last Fall, much of the living goes on around the yurt rather than in it. And that’s as it should be with a shelter traditionally used by nomads. Take the shower. There’s [...]
Townsend’s Big-Eared Bat: Species of the Week
On our Northeast Oregon property, we have an old house that’s rotting. It has little historic or architectural value, so we’ve been leaning towards tearing it down. Then my nephew, Gerek, found the bat in the closet….
Fermented Pickles
My mom made sauerkraut when I was a kid, and it was good. But during the years I lived in Nepal, I discovered a fermented world that went beyond cabbage….
Dealing With My Own Sh–
I’d like to keep this a family friendly blog, but what else should I call it? Feces? Excrement? Waste? Poo? They all sound too distant, clinical or childish. It’s so easy to refer to it in euphemisms when clean water washes it far away, into rivers, oceans, or sewage treatment plants. But when you have to figure out how to deal with it yourself, it turns to shit….
My Remote Office
The dilapidated house is home to many packrats, a frog that lives in the old stove, a few birds, and many wasps. But the phone line goes to the house (and thanks to Jerry’s engineering now goes to the shady side), so that’s where I do my online work. It’s a lovely quarter mile walk from the yurt….
Species, Satellites, and Old Houses
Living off-grid in a yurt is mostly wonderful, at least this time of year. I know that spending time in such a beautiful place is a luxury not everyone can afford. So please understand, I’m not complaining….
Wildflowers and More
Some more photos of our beautiful spring in Flora, Oregon: When I get more internet time, I will fill out the captions on the photos with a bit more information.
